


I'm Walking On Sunshine

by Memories_of_the_Shadows



Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening
Genre: Dragon Age: Origins - Witch Hunt DLC, F/F, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, I Ship It, I won't allow it, Implied Relationships, Implied Sexual Content, Implied/Referenced Open Relationships, M/M, Meet-Cute, Messing up the clean is the fun part, Mud, No Angst, No Smut, Self-Indulgent, The Author Regrets Nothing, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, brings people together, clean
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-03
Updated: 2019-04-03
Packaged: 2020-01-04 10:31:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,009
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18341876
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Memories_of_the_Shadows/pseuds/Memories_of_the_Shadows
Summary: Finn is so very clean, so of course Anders wants to mess him up a little.  Then Finn messes himself up and Anders can't help but fall in love.





	I'm Walking On Sunshine

**Author's Note:**

> Title is from "Walking on Sunshine" by Katrina and the Waves.

“Oh! I know you. You’re Anders, aren’t you?” says the immaculately dressed mage loitering in the library. Anders almost feels unworthy to be in his presence--the Templars having _just_ remembered him in that dungeon, his beard’s grown in and his hair is a disaster, luckily the Templars would dump a bucket of water on him every other day so at least he doesn’t _smell_ \--he’s just so very _clean_. “You’re my hero,” he sighs, clutching a book to his chest.

“I’m what?” His voice cracks like he’s hit puberty again, he hasn’t spoken for so long and his first conversation isn’t with Karl like he’d intended. (He’d planned on confessing to his former teacher, plotted a thousand different ways to do it while laying there in the dark. It was all he could think about when that door unlocked. Karl isn’t vain, doesn’t care about Anders’ appearance; the moment the Templars released him, Anders went to look for him. Now he wishes he’d waited until morning.)

“My hero! I know you didn’t intend for it, but when you escaped by swimming the lake they stopped making us do exercise outdoors. Happiest day of my life.” He hums--Anders can almost remember his name now, absurdly fastidious and something to do with flowers?--and re-shelves the heavy book with a huff.

“You know, exercise is good for you,” Anders says, one of the few things he’s ever agreed with Wynne about. Flora--that’s it, that’s what they always called him--grumbles and smooths out a nonexistent wrinkle. It’s almost cute.

“Getting feasted on by mosquitoes is decidedly _not_ good for me, I’ll thank you very much.” Flora inspects his sleeves for inkspots, staring intently anywhere but Anders, a faint blush on well-scrubbed and closely shaven cheeks. Anders is struck with the sudden urge to mess the mage up a little. Would he squeak and hurry to fix it? Or would he just grumble like a kitten again.

Maybe both. Anders loves kittens. It would be adorable. “Look, Flora, it’s been a nice chat but have you seen Enchanter Thekla--”

“It’s Finn. Please.” He looks a little strained.

“Finn. Right, okay. Flora’s pretty cute but it’s your name.” Anders has no right to judge someone for picking their own name. He’s had every opportunity to tell people the name his parents gave him after he learned enough Trade and he hasn’t. He _likes_ being called Anders. Oh, look, Finn is blushing again, it’s adorable.

“Enchanter Thekla is expected back within the week.” And there goes all of Anders’ romantic plans to run straight--barring this little detour--into Karl’s arms, remind them both of their relationship and confess the depth of his feelings in what _would have been_ a dashingly idealistic fashion no doubt. Finn glances at the time candle in the corner and blanches the color of cottage cheese.

“It’s nearly one in the morning!” Which is likely why there’s no one else in the library. Lucky for Anders it’s probably old Ser Blakin’s rounds tonight, the ancient sod being blind as a bat and deaf as a rock. Which _would have been perfect_ except Karl isn’t even here. To the Void with his luck. Finn narrows his eyes at Anders, and he fights the urge to coo over how much the other man reminds him of a kitten trying to be intimidating. “Why are you looking for Enchanter Thekla at one in the morning?”

Kitten’s not as dumb as a Templar. “Oh, no reason. Completely forgot the time. There’s not windows in here, you know.” Finn mumbles and shifts, glaring darkly at the walls.

“Windows! I should hope not. Damage the books, no doubt, and let all manner of things in,” Anders hears, and he just cannot fathom not wanting to see the sun. Just the thought makes him itch. “But I imagine _you_ would like that though. Windows I mean. You seem to want to be outside a great deal.”

“Windows would be nice.” Freedom is better. “Don’t you ever want to go outside?” Anders will chase every breath of freedom he can get until the Templars finally kill him for it. Sod all the windows in Thedas, he’d rather not be chained.

Finn had been pulling another book off the shelf, apparently forgetting the time again. If Anders doesn’t miss his guess, that’s how _he_ ended up in the library at one in the morning. At Anders’ question, though, he starts and the book drops to the floor, pulling at his robe until it’s just slightly askew. He squeaks, grumbles, and hurries to pull it straight again, and it’s just as cute as Anders thought it would be. “ _Outside_!?” He sounds so aggrieved that Anders’ lips curl up on their own, even as his eyebrows rise in disbelief. “No, of course not. There’s mud, bugs, and all manner of things that would be happy to have my blood outside my body where it _does not belong_.” His entire body shudders at the thought.

“Mud’s not that bad.” Sewage is worse, and Anders will _still_ take that over staying at the Circle. He does agree about the blood bit. Let no one say that Anders is the pinnacle of battle-hardened apostate.

“‘Mud’s not that bad’!? Well, I suppose it’s alright for _you_ , you swam the lake to get away. Can you _imagine_ what’s in there?” Anders doesn’t really have to imagine. He knows firsthand. That’s what he gets for losing track of the shoreline.

“Mmm, well this was fun.” It was rather. It doesn’t quite make up for missing Karl, but Finn is cute, and Anders’ had fun teasing him. “See you later, Finn.”

Finn fidgets and looks up at Anders through his lashes, laughing a little. That’s a dangerous look. Anders is not equal to this. Were Finn’s eyes always that big? Remove the temptation, remove the temptation, do _not_ think of messing up that perfect hair, Void blast it all. “Anders,” he says a little wonderingly. “Yes, later, I would like that.”

Anders squeaks, hopes his face isn’t as red as he thinks it is, and flees. Later--after a round or two with his hand and the memory of Finn’s big eyes--he vows not to leave his room until Karl comes back and they can talk about exceptions again, because he’s not that good at resisting temptation and Karl and him still belong to the same Circle. Their agreement still stands.

News of the Blight reaches him before Karl does, though, and when the Templars start making noises about taking him to Ostagar, Anders escapes from the Circle for the seventh time.

* * *

Being a Grey Warden has some truly awful bits--the dreams, the shortened life span, the unending jaunts full of terror and violence--but Aukusti is really just the best _ever_ , the others aren’t bad at all, and he can see the sky whenever he wants.

There’s a pair at the gates to the Keep when Anders, Nate, Oghren, and Aukusti finally come into view of it. An odd pair--an elf in decently heavy armor, and a red-haired mage in the cleanest robes Anders has seen outside the Circle--but Velanna is there; scowling but not actively violent so they’re obviously friends. Anders can stop seeing Templars behind every corner anytime now, thanks.

“Warden Brosca!” says a familiar voice, not one that Anders would have ever thought to hear again though. “We hoped you’d be back soon, Ariane and I brought dog treats for Nyrrikki--” Finn, of all people in the Circle to see free and clear in the daylight, babbles, Aukusti smiling and nodding at the right intervals after explaining that his dog is with his lover. Velanna growls at the other Dalish in that special way that Anders is _sure_ is meant to be her flirting, and the woman who could only be Ariane smiles innocently back, eyes sparkling.

Ariane is very pretty, he wishes Velanna all the luck in Thedas, but he only has eyes for Finn at this moment.

Finn, who has just a smattering of freckles from the sun and a very red neck that he’s probably healed a dozen times today alone. Finn, who hasn’t seemed to notice that his hem is brown from the dust. Finn, who is the second-best thing Anders could have seen--the best being Karl, back on the shores of Ferelden and as free as Anders is now, ready and willing to have him back, but of the two, Finn was less likely and so all the sweeter for it having happened--and Finn, who has finally caught sight of Anders and _lights up_ like the sun in the sky.

“Anders!” he says, breathily, and that shy look again, the one that makes it almost impossible to think peeks out. “You were right about the mud! Look, I think I still have some on me and the world hasn’t ended or _anything_.” Finn’s eyes drop away, looking for what promises to be a much smaller speck of mud than what anyone else would notice and Anders can’t help himself.

He grabs Finn’s face with both hands--the skin barely has stubble, but enough to know he’s not elf-blooded, just the closest shaver Anders knows--and kisses him. This time he can swallow the squeak of surprise, and he does, Finn relaxing against him, warm and melting under his touch.

They kiss until they need to breath, ignoring Velanna and Nathaniel’s twin snorts of disgust, Oghren’s lewd cheering on, and Aukusti and Ariane’s similar pleased laugh and sigh respectively. Finn’s cheeks are red, his eyes dazed, and Anders _wants to mess him up_ because he’s still far too perfect.

His hand is warm, dry, and fits in Anders’ like it was made to. “We’re going to the library,” he says, staring at Finn who somehow manages to smell like Andraste’s Grace even after being on the road for probably weeks or months. “I’ll show you how much better it is with windows in a library too,” he promises lowly. Finn stares up at him, lips red and parted, and Anders better have enough self control to actually _get_ them there. “Don’t come in there unless you want to see us naked,” he says to the rest of them.

Finn squeaks, face and neck now all over red, but he nods frantically, “library, okay, yes.” Oghren whistles.

“WHAT!?” Nathaniel’s voice goes shrill but it’s easily ignored.

“Zev likes the library too,” Aukusti says. Nathaniel takes the bait. Anders is forever grateful, Aukusti is his favorite non-lover of all time.

“Can Zevran even _read_!?”

“Don’t be mean, Nate, of course he can. He likes poetry.”

“We don’t have a poetry section.”

“Well, no, but the windows are nicest there.”

“That is-- you are-- Anders you can’t just defile my family’s library!” is the last thing he hears before the doors slam shut. He kisses Finn again, briefly.

“I don’t think--oh, please, yes--that I’ll be looking out the windows much--don’t stop, _please_ , don’t stop…” The kiss turns out not so brief, or rather, there are many of them peppered between his words. Anders herds them along, thanking Andraste and the Maker that it’s lunch so most everyone is at the mess hall. Makes navigating the halls half blind with his mouth on Finn’s at every available moment much easier.

“I don’t think--mmm, yes--I will be either.” They can look at the books and the windows _after_ they’re done ‘defiling’ the library. That way, he’ll have plenty of time to admire Finn’s sex hair. It’ll be _glorious_. And without a mirror, there’ll be no way for him to fix it so Anders can admire the mess all he wants. Life is _wonderful_.

Nathaniel doesn’t heed his warning, but he gets to the library, far, _far_ too late to do anything but shriek and slam the door. Finn’s sex hair is, indeed glorious, and the sun glinting redly off of it is everything Anders has ever needed in his life.

**Author's Note:**

> I was replaying Witch Hunt, and was just so struck by how adorable Finn is. He's really just very cute and I love him. I love Anders too, and I went straight from Witch Hunt into Awakening, so you know, I just had to do it. Of course, I ship Anders with absolutely everyone so of course what was initially just a "what if Finn told Anders how much he dislikes leaving the Circle, Anders would never be able to understand it" turned into a ship fic because I am weak. And then, I was reading the wikia page for Finn, and it turns out that he went apostate after the events of Witch Hunt so, _of course_ I had to have a happy reunion.
> 
> Aukusti is my Brosca, from my "everyone is pretty much nice, and everything mostly turns out fine" timeline. He's my favorite Warden that I've done. So, I definitely wanted my happy ending Warden for my happy ending for Anders. And we can all just agree that everything works out and nothing bad happens ever again, right, _right_???
> 
> (As far as Anders and Karl's relationship goes, they knew they might be separated at any moment, so they agreed if one of them was sent to another Circle without warning, the relationship was ended. I've always headcanoned them to have a complicated relationship, especially since we know Anders sleeps around a bunch in his youth, but let me know if you want/need to know more about my opinions on that!)
> 
> As always, you can come follow or talk to me on my [tumblr](https://sachinighte.tumblr.com/) too!


End file.
